Tapping (EFT)

Practice it when you’re not fully activated with very high anxiety so you can learn it, that’ll make it easier to do and reach for when you really need it at times of high anxiety.

Setup Phase

1. What are you feeling?

Begin by identifying what you are working on, and specifically, how you feel about it. Examples:

• “I am terrified”
• “I am feeling very anxious”
• “I am scared that I don’t know how I’m going to figure this out”
• “I have some anxiety”
• “I am tired and confused”.

This should be how you feel right now, in this moment. Take your time and identify this. Each time you begin a round, begin again with this and feel into how you feel now.

2. Test the intensity.

Give a number between 0 and 10 for how intensely you feel this way right now. (0 means you don’t feel it, 10 means it is the most intense you can imagine it ever feeling).

3. Set up the phrase you’ll use.

Even though I feel ******

I fully and completely love and accept myself.

Replace ****** with what you are feeling, what you want to reduce.

You can have some flexibility with the first part of the phrase (“Even though I feel”), for example you might say: “Even though my shoulder hurts” if you prefer that over “Even though I have pain in my shoulder”.

It’s important to keep the second part of the phrase as-is:

“I fully and completely love and accept myself”.

Even if you don’t feel it or believe it, say the words.

While you are doing the setup, continuously tap the Karate Chop point on your hand. Repeat your phrase three times, while continuously tapping on the karate chop point. Or in that soft spot below the collar bone.

Tapping Phase

4. Begin tapping while saying the phrase

Tap on the points in sequence, listed here and shown in the diagram.

Keep your focus on the thing you’re working on while you’re saying the phrase and tapping on these points:

1. Top of the head - If you were to draw a line from one ear, over the head, to the other ear, and another line from your nose to the back of your neck, tap where those two lines would intersect
2. Eyebrow - At the beginning of the eyebrow, just above and to one side of the nose.
3. Side of the Eye - On the bone bordering the outside corner of the eye.
4. Under the Eye - On the bone under an eye about 1 inch below your pupil.
5. Under Nose - On the small area between the bottom of your nose and the top of your upper lip.
6. Chin - Midway between the point of your chin and the bottom of your lower lip. Even though it is not directly on the point of the chin, it is called the chin point for ease of reference.
7. Collarbone - Under the collarbone there is a soft spot.
8. Under Arm - On the side of the body, at a point even with the nipple (for men) or in the middle of the bra strap (for women). It is about 4 inches below the armpit.
9. Inside Wrist
10. Karate Chop Point - center of the fleshy part of the outside of your hand.

You can do one or both sides, using either or both hands.

Check-In

5. How are you feeling now?

Now, after you complete a full round of tapping, feel into the intensity of what you are feeling again. Give it a number from 0 to 10. Note if it has gone down, or not.

Repeat

Now, do another round. When you do, feel into what is currently the feeling you have, which might be a reduced version. Modify your phrase to reflect that. If it’s not, that’s ok too, don’t force it. But, if it has reduced, then change your words to what you are feeling now.